Of course the comp driver has much less distortion at high levels (and it gets to those high levels through less compression- a bit of an oxymoron )

It's the low level signals that I am concerned about. Not just the Esotar, but the good Scanspeak, Seas e.t.c. dome tweeters produce that shimmer and DECAY on a stuck jazz cymbal, the air of an orchestral triangle e.t.c that are missing in action on a DE250.

I go to concerts. I know what the real thing sounds like. I'm talking about maybe 1/4 sec, 1/2 sec of triangle (or something) that just isn't there on the DE250 (but it is there on my recordings).

Originally posted by D OB G (...) but the good Scanspeak, Seas e.t.c. dome tweeters produce that shimmer and DECAY on a stuck jazz cymbal, the air of an orchestral triangle e.t.c that are missing in action on a DE250.

I don't have experience with compressiondrivers and horns, but want to mention that according to others, who tried "waveguides" on dome-speakers(!), the "shimmer" you mention tends to "get lost" WITH the guide ... But it's supposed to be not a real "loss" but rather the absence/reduction of room-reflections that accounts for the difference.
So in reality there IS NO "shimmer", just "detail" added by the room ... (?)

But I have to admit, I don't know if that's really all there is to this "phenomenon" of "micro-detail".

Originally posted by D OB G
I am happy with the sound of CD and compression horn overall. The dynamics, lack of compression, the way it loads the room.
I just want a better driver....please.....???

David

I don't think that another driver is going to solve your problem. The differences in compression drivers are not that great, especially compared to the difference between a direct radiator and a CD waveguide.

Make no mistake about it there is a "sizzling" quality about a direct radiator that is beaming HFs right into your ear. If you like this sound then stay away from CD waveguides and try an exponential horn or something like that which has a much narrower HF directivity. Personally, when I listen to dome tweeter now, this same "sizzle" drives me up a wall after a few minutes (many others have made this same comment). Initially it sounds like "detail" later on it sounds like ...

Also, never use a DEQ to EQ a waveguide because it can screw it up badly. A waveguide should be EQ for flat power response not flat axial response which a single point microphone can't do.

From your discussion I don't think that you are setting up the waveguide/horn properly which is the problem, not the driver. Direct radiators are easy to set up and so they are more difficult to screw up. Its very easy to mess up a waveguide.

You opinion of foam, for instance, is completely the opposite of anyone else that I have talked to who has tried it. I would strongly suggest NOT using the DEQ and EQing in a more conventional way.

Basically, I don't EQ to any single axis, but to the average of the forward sound. The whole concept of EQing precisely to a single point leaves me cold. Does the EQ gate the reference? and if so what is the window? There are so many ways for an "automatic" process to screw up that I don't think that I could enumerate them all.

Your experience with the foam appears to be unique and I might be concerned about that if I was in your position.

It could also be just what I said, that you are looking for that pin-point sound that a direct radiator has at HFs. People have come to expect it and when its not there, as with a well done CD device, the sound is a little strange at first. This has been a big hump to get over in auditioning my speakers. This is why I prefer to do auditions here - I don't let people leave in 60 seconds, they have to stay an hour or more. By this time they have acclamated to the different sound and find it far more appealing.

But the bottom line here is that changing drivers is not likely to change your perceptions. I've measured dozens of drivers and they are all very very similar if they are of the same size throat and diaphragm. In fact many of these devices you can interchange the diaphragms, which are more than likely all made in the same place (ATON in Thailand).

You might try the De500 as the titanium diaphragm will go a little higher. I don't expect that you'll find much difference, but you can try it. As to other manufacturers, they are all very competitive with each other. I once tested a Chinese knock-off of the DE250 - the diaphragms were interchangable. It was $17, did not quite measure as good as the DE250, but I'm guessing that in the system you wouldn't know the difference.